You can read ahead up to 30 chapters on my Patreon: https://www.p*treon.com/darkshadow6395
The two fought fiercely, clashing again and again.
One fought with his fists, but every part of his body was a weapon capable of Haoshoku Haki infusion, which boosted his combat strength to the point where he could unleash powerful attacks without making physical contact.
The other fought with a blade. Every strike came from a different angle, cutting off all avenues of escape. His strikes were as fast as lightning and heavy with crushing force. They contained the terrifying power to cleave mountains, the sky, and even the sea itself.
Their fierce battle threw everything around them into chaos, shocking nearby combatants.
"Who is this Marine brat?! Is he actually keeping up with the vice-captain?!"
The pirates were horrified as they saw this scene.
"Kōjin...he's already this strong?"
"He's fighting Dark King Rayleigh evenly!"
The Marines were equally stunned.
On the Dog-Head Battleship, Saul, who had not joined the fight because his lower-body injuries had not fully healed, leaned over the ship's rail. He watched the battle with excitement and agitation on his face.
"Kōjin! Keep it up! Even if the enemy is Rayleigh, you can do it!"
He clenched his fist and cheered for Kōjin.
Suddenly, the Den Den Mushi next to him rang. Saul turned and hesitated briefly before answering.
"This is Sengoku!" Sengoku's gloomy voice came from the Den Den Mushi.
"Admiral Sengoku, this is Marine Headquarters Lieutenant Colonel Saul!" Saul quickly responded.
"Saul... good. Where are Garp and Kōjin?" Sengoku asked.
"They're on the island, fighting the Roger Pirates.
I couldn't join them because I'm injured, so I stayed on the battleship." Saul replied immediately.
"Hah!"
Sengoku's long exhale was clearly audible through the Den Den Mushi and he seemed to be suppressing his anger.
"Good. Do NOT hang up. From now on, you will report every detail of the battle on the island to me. Describe everything as clearly as you can."
"And immediately report your exact location!"
Saul nodded. "Yes, Admiral Sengoku!"
He understood the meaning behind Sengoku's tone. Over the past few days, everyone had witnessed the lack of respect that Kōjin and Vice Admiral Garp had showed Sengoku.
"Garp is fighting Roger! Right now, they're evenly matched."
"Kōjin is fighting Dark King Rayleigh, and they seem to be evenly matched as well."
"Bogard and Kuzan are fighting Jabba."
"As for the others..."
"... "
Saul stared at the battle on the island as he reported everything to Sengoku. But just hearing the first few lines twisted Sengoku's expression in disbelief.
"What did you just say?"
"Kōjin is fighting Dark King Rayleigh?"
"Kōjin can actually fight Rayleigh?!"
His voice was filled with disbelief and doubt.
"Yes!"
"And... well, I forgot to mention that Kojin had already made Rayleigh bleed while he is still completely uninjured. Not even his clothes are torn."
Saul said this while watching the battle and chuckling in his deep voice.
Sengoku: "?"
A moment later, Sengoku took a deep breath.
"Describe every detail of Kōjin and Rayleigh's fight to me... their movements, directions, everything."
"Remember... EVERY single detail and as closely as you can!"
Saul frowned slightly. This was difficult for a giant with a limited intellect.
But he still nodded honestly.
"Yes, Admiral Sengoku!"
Then he began his strange commentary: "Rayleigh swung his sword. Kōjin didn't dodge, and he was split down the middle. But he didn't die or get hurt."
"Kōjin punched. Rayleigh blocked with his sword but it was Rayleigh was sent flying, smashing into and shattering a big boulder and fifteen... no, twenty trees."
"Rayleigh tried to stand up, but Kōjin disappeared. He is using Soru. My God, his Soru is so fast!"
"Kōjin punched again!"
"...
Sengoku listened with a deepening frown. The giant lieutenant colonel's ability to organize language was unbelievably crude. Still, Sengoku forced himself to visualize the fight, gradually forming a mental image of the battlefield.
Meanwhile...
Kōjin suddenly appeared right in front of Rayleigh. His fist, wrapped in black-and-red lightning, came crashing down.
"This brat's speed has increased again! I've never seen Soru this fast! His physical strength and reaction speed are stronger than when the battle started!"
Rayleigh flipped to his feet and tilted his head to the side as he thought of this.
The fist's impact scraped past his ear, pulverizing the massive boulder behind him. The black-and-red lightning tore a huge hole in the forest beyond.
Rayleigh swung his long blade and instantly appeared in front of Kōjin, slicing off the opponent's head once again.
But the strike veered off to the side again, leaving Kōjin unharmed.
"Is he an Undying-type monster? And not a Devil Fruit user! Not even Busoshoku (Armament) Haki works on him!"
Rayleigh's expression grew heavy as he realized all this, but this was beyond strange.
He had never encountered such a troublesome opponent. Even if the kid were merely someone who just couldn't die, then that would be one thing, but his strength increased rapidly during the battle. Rayleigh couldn't tell if he had been hiding his true ability on purpose.
Meanwhile, Kōjin only grew more excited.
Fighting a world-class powerhouse meant dying constantly, but the gains were enormous.
His Soru had already risen to level fifty-six.
Compared to his initial speed, it was a qualitative transformation, using the technique word 'Soru' couldn't describe his speed anymore.
He could cross several thousand meters in an instant.
With each level, his Soru movement speed and range increased dramatically.
During the fight with Rayleigh, he tested it and found that the maximum distance he could shift his body was over five thousand meters.
After using it, there was no cooldown; he could immediately activate the next Soru.
"When Soru reaches max level, will it become a true teleportation technique?"
'Just how fast could he become?'
When fighting someone like Rayleigh, he could appear before his opponent in an instant and throw a punch. It was difficult for Rayleigh to predict, judge, or dodge his attacks at this point.
Thus, a simple formula emerged: Soru + Haoshoku-infused punches = an instant kill for normal strong fighters.
Even top-level powerhouses with slightly slower reactions would be caught off guard and injured by this combo.
After all, the fully maxed Haoshoku Infusion greatly increases his attack power.
At this moment, Level 56 Soru combined with his undying physique allowed Kōjin to finally fight Rayleigh at an even footing.
He no longer died as frequently as before and had even left injuries on Rayleigh's body.
"What a strange little fellow! You still haven't grasped Kenbunshoku Haki, have you? And you haven't even begun Busoshoku (Armament)."
After another clash, Rayleigh wiped the blood from his lips and smiled lightly as he spoke.
His relentless offensive style... only attacking, never defending was insane and difficult to handle. But by now, he had a clear understanding of the boy's abilities.
"Please don't go easy on me because of this!" Kōjin pressed his lips together, smiling slightly as he spoke.
"You really don't like talking, huh?" Rayleigh sighed and shook his head. Even now, he lacked sufficient information about his opponent.
The next moment, the wind in the empty space between them howled, and the two vanished again and collided ruthlessly against each other.
Kōjin's eyes gleamed brilliantly, and his blood boiled.
This was a battle in which he could unleash his full power, a battle that built on his previous training and pushed him to evolve.
Dying repeatedly made him stronger... His strength and reaction speed increased, and he no longer knew what limits he had reached.
By nightfall, he knew only that, in pure power clashes, he was slightly inferior to Rayleigh.
Once Soru reached level sixty, he began investing points into Tekkai.
And to his surprise, leveling Tekkai caused his defense to rise at a ridiculous, unbelievable rate.
He even discovered a new application for Tekkai.
"Come, Rayleigh! Let's keep fighting!"
He grew even more exhilarated, his Battle Intent soared. He felt no fatigue at all.
Kōjin had a feeling that this would be the battle where he transformed.
The frequency and number of deaths was completly unprecedented!
Wind and lightning seemed to accompany him.
(End of Chapter)